


The Cost of Flames

by inkst0rm



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/F, F/M, Female My Unit | Byleth, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Black Eagles Route Spoilers, M/M, Multi, Post-Black Eagles Route (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Spoilers for CF
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:01:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27124894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkst0rm/pseuds/inkst0rm
Summary: Byleth's awakening after five years was... unexpected, to say the least. Edelgard knew that. The two's relationship had been close, and she'd never once forgotten the look in her eyes, especially once those eyes became bright green. However, her return has reignited some... burrowed feelings in the emperor's heart.
Relationships: Bernadetta von Varley/Hubert von Vestra, Caspar von Bergliez/Linhardt von Hevring, Catherine/Shamir Nevrand, Dorothea Arnault/Petra Macneary, Edelgard von Hresvelg/My Unit | Byleth, Felix Hugo Fraldarius/Sylvain Jose Gautier
Kudos: 26





	The Cost of Flames

**Author's Note:**

> ships listed will be present at various points throughout the story! final classes & pairings are based upon personal headcanons + actual endings that happened in my cf playthrough :)

_The last day before the professor fell... I remember it well._ Edelgard stood at the foot of the monastery, having arrived in order to visit the site of battle... and on coincidence, right when the millennium festival would have happened. She knew the monastery itself was abandoned; the attack of her and her Strike Force had separated the Church from their allies, and dragged the whole continent into one of war. _This was the day we promised we'd meet. Five years after graduation... and yet, here we are._

She stepped slowly through the broken gate, the edges of her red gown catching on the dusty stone beneath her shoes. _Although this marketplace has recovered, it's not fully restored._ Upon spotting the Emperor of the Adrestian Empire, customers began to flee out of fear; she was said to be a wicked foe wielding an axe that could chop her opponents in half. Her lavender gaze glanced back once before she approached the old monastery. _I used to talk to Hubert in here. How young and careless we used to be, as students under the professor._

Nobody followed her. She didn't care.

She approached the steps to the upstairs, heading up slowly and pausing in its hallways. _Byleth's father used to stay in that room._ She cast a tender gaze at the captain's quarters, briefly slipping inside. _Somehow... this is untouched. Gods, I can't believe she..._

_The day the professor fell._

_Byleth reached her hand out to me. She said that no matter what happened, she'd be by my side... and I know my teacher wouldn't just... do something like that. I think. I don't know._

_After she got thrown off of the cliff, nobody ever saw her again. Rhea got distracted with trying to manage the beasts, and Thales and Solon... they, along with everyone else that day, split. We tried to capture the archbishop, but by the time the Immaculate One had disappeared, we couldn't find her... I learned later that Rhea had escaped to the Kingdom._

She exited the captain's quarters, then headed into Hanneman's old office. _The Crest Analyzer._ She held her hand over it, revealing her pair of Crests. _I returned here for a reason, however... as I must break this war from a dreadlocked position. The Strike Force has held together well, but... it is incomplete without our teacher. Byleth._

Byleth's crest had appeared alongside her minor. _The Crest of Flames. Our guidance. The flame in the darkness. We're going to occupy the monastery... as we did while she was alive._ "Today would've been the festival. Five years to the day..."

Suddenly, footsteps caught her ears, distance, but approaching. Edelgard's gaze widened, and she stepped out into the hallway, calling, "Who's there? Show yourself!"

The footsteps approached, and she reached for the dagger at her side, only to drop it from her sheath in awe. _Byleth._ "It can't be... Byleth?!"

She came with a quick stride to her side. "But I searched everywhere, and I never found a trace of you - how the hell are you alive?!" She tried to think, wracking her head as to how Byleth could've possibly survived the fall. "What have you been doing for the last five years? Where have you even been? How did you survive?!"

"Shh..." This was the first time she had spoken. "Edelgard... I was sleeping."

"Don't joke with me now... not at a time like this! It's been five years since you vanished, Byleth!" Nonetheless, Edelgard's face flushed with a... familiar feeling. "My heart broke when you left... I felt so guilty for your fall, I-" She blinked quickly at the ground, exasperation in her voice. "I searched everywhere after you vanished. I knew you were alive. There was no proof of you alive, but there wasn't any of you dead either, so I thought -" She looked back up at her, seeing the faint realms of shock in her green eyes. "I led everyone as I thought best. I fought with all the passion in my bones... and I walked it alone. Without you."

"Edelgard..."

She wouldn't get to finish, as Edelgard slipped her hands around her torso, pulling her in for a hug. "Welcome back... I'm so glad you're safe." Byleth's cool hand pressed on her neck, and the two stood like this for a moment before the emperor continued, "It's felt like an eternity since you vanished... even though it was only five years."

"Five years is a pretty long time, El." This time, Byleth's joke actually made her chuckle a little. "And before you ask... I still feel and act the same as I did before. I still want to fight at your side. Enemies upon enemies lay before us... as expected, during wartimes. I expect your determination rages on?"

"It always has," she sighed, the edges of her crown catching in her hair. "Until the end, where we will defeat that false god... where we'll save the world from them and return freedom to humanity." They pulled away, hanging on at their fingertips. "So, Professor... are you ready to stand with me?"

"As ready as ever." At her reassurance, Edelgard's heart sank.

"Thank you... have you seen the situation outside? Or do you need a recap?"

"I really was asleep all that time, El, so give me the details." Byleth's eyes blinked. "And I'm not joking this time. Tell me what's happened."

"In that case... let's fill you in." The emperor grabbed her hand and lead her up to the third floor so they could view the area together. "After you fell asleep, presumably, Rhea vanished. We stormed the monastery, which sent the houses back to their territories. I got word that the archbishop had escaped to the Kingdom, where Dimitri is. He, on the mention, took control of the Kingdom, and Claude, of the Alliance. We've been at a strange stalemate for a while... and that's where we are. I plan to take the Strike Force forward to break it."

They paused at the edge of the stone wall, blinking down at the shops and villages. "It's clear Dimitri will support the church... Claude has simply thrown the Alliance in chaos. He tries to remain neutral in the internal conflict he's dealing with, but the two's positions have locked up the war. With your return... well, we've been waiting for this. I think you being back will shift this war in our favor." Her eyes sank, then narrowed. "It's time to eliminate them all... together."

"The Kingdom... the Alliance..."

"Back off in your murmurs, are we?" She smiled and scoffed, then stared down with a hurting tension in her gaze. "Although our houses differed... we lived and learned together, under you, as well as Professor Hanneman and Professor Manuela. Some ranks have been hesitant to fight old friends, and of those of their homelands... especially Sylvain, Ignatz, and Shamir. They had lives back home, and friends who miss them dearly... but they sided with us for a reason." She gave Byleth a quick side-eye, then continued. "Knowing you're alive... it has to raise their spirits."

"I agree. Now, may I meet our house again?"

"Of course, my teacher." The emperor's heart warmed in the company of Byleth, who gave her a nod as she took the lead. "But first... They never lost faith in you, Byleth. I kept their spirits alive... they await your return. Your guidance was critical then, as it is now."

"I understand." She nodded and followed. "I assume everyone has grown immensely over the last five years."

"Absolutely. You should see Felix's skills in swordsmanship now." The emperor gave her a smile. "If he wasn't a formidable opponent for sparring then, he's definitely so now."

"I remember his skills. He scored an A+ on his Swordmaster exam."

"As expected. As for the others... Hubert has been my vassal. He's been an excellent dark magic teacher, despite his, ah, tone. Bernadetta has been learning how to ride lately, although she and Shamir enjoy a good hunting practice. Sylvain and Ferdinand have been hosting jousting competitions to see who can handle their lance better - classic boyish things. Caspar and Petra have been learning how to handle wyverns, and Linhardt, Dorothea, and Ignatz have been bonding over a love of art. I believe that's everyone for now."

"Seems as though they have been productive." Edelgard extended her arm out to reintroduce her companions, and they approached with awe.

"Everyone, the professor has returned!"


End file.
